Immigration Attorney Rant

[Dodi 69]

Just a quick warning that this post may be SLIGHTLY but related to it.

I need to vent for a moment, because this K1 process is really getting to me.

I know there are horror stories out there about horrible immigration attorneys, even those affiliated with AILA, like mine claims to be, and feel free to chime in with your own, because I'm sure it could be worse. But this week has just made me break down.

My fiance and I have been together for 2 years, but we waited a year to meet in person because I have children from a previous marriage and I was terrified to introduce someone I met online into their lives if I wasn't absolutely sure. Once we met we just KNEW. There was never an awkward moment, like when you're in a new relationship. It was like picking my best friend up from the airport. I started talking to an immigration attorney immediately about our options, but as a single mom, I knew I couldn't afford her services and the fees all at once, so we had to wait.

She eventually said, "Well, you might want to consider what one of my other couples is doing. They don't have time to wait for the K1 before their planned wedding date, so he's getting a B2 and, even though you're not technically supposed to do it like this, there's a loophole we can exploit, and I'll help them smooth it over when it comes time for the AOS interview". We tried this, planned our wedding, and he got his interview appointment for the B2 on Feb 16th. Our wedding should have been last Friday, but of course, he was denied (even though he didn't mention the wedding).

I got my tax refund and hired her immediately, chalking it up to our bad luck, not her bad advice, and we started putting together the I-129F package. I got all the documentation together (she wouldn't let me file it without having the I-134 together and I didn't realize till joining a couple of forums that we didn't need that till the embassy stage). She even had the audacity to ask me, "Now, why did you apply for the B2?" SHE FORGOT SHE'D SUGGESTED IT!! I gave her the last of my paperwork on April 2nd, after I'd started a new job and had been to visit him in the UK. I didn't hear a word from her till I got confirmation on my 894364th phone call to her paralegal that the paperwork had been sent off on May 7th.

When we hadn't gotten a receipt number in 3 weeks I still couldn't reach the atty on the phone, but she finally emailed me that she'd sent my package to the wrong place and it had been returned, but not to worry, she'd expressed it to the right place the same day. THEN I find out that she sent my ORIGINAL I-134 with the I-129F package, including all of the original documentation, even though we'll need that for the embassy interview!!!

I'm a paralegal. I'm trained to trust attorneys and to believe they know what they're doing, because they're trained to. Her father was even a naturalized citizen from Mexico, so she's supposed to know how this goes! I've learned more from VJ and another forum I'm a member of than she apparently did in law school. My wedding day should have been on Friday, but because we trusted her bad advice we lost all of our deposits, everything. And to add insult to injury, my florist mistakenly charged my credit card yesterday for a wedding he didn't do, because his assistant didn't cancel it like she was supposed to. (I got a refund before the day was over, but MAN, I broke down and cried like a baby! )

This is just all too much. Can we PLEASE get some good news soon???

Sorry about the rant, guys. I just needed to let off a little steam. /rant

Edited June 30, 2010 by Dodi

[Nica_In_Love 98]

Hey there Dodi.

I'm sorry to hear that. We also hired an attorney to file our paperwork, even though things have been going fairly well, I realize now that we could have done it ourselves with the VJ members' help. We got married in October but our lawyer didn't file our petition until February (3 months lost), we recently got an RFE so our process was delayed a bit.

But don't stress, my suggestion is you keep on top of her, sometimes we have to call our lawyer 8 times a day until he responds. And also keep close to this forum, it has helped us enormously.

Good luck and God bless!

Edited June 30, 2010 by Nica_In_Love

[Leigh Ann 8]

I'm really sorry about your issues! I hope it turns around and everything works out from this point forward.

This - obviously - isn't going to make you feel any better, and if she's holding herself out as an immigration lawyer, she should totally know what is required (and where to send it!). But - law schools don't require immigration courses so there's no required formal training to be an immigration attorney. So there are huge gaps in quality, depending on who has more experience and who takes the time to learn things properly!

ETA: also, I think that joining AILA just requires paying a fee?

Edited June 30, 2010 by Leigh Ann

[kennym 275]

WOW!

I am very sorry to hear about your experience. I just wish there was a special place we could stick all the attorneys like this one. Some island sourrounded by shark infested waters...

Anyway, I considered hiring an attorney before beginning this process also. I spoke to literly a dozen or so, and got so much diferent advise that it made me absolutely terified about this process.. The attorney made it seem impossible and complicated. I learned about VJ from a friend in Colombia, and started to read about the process and learned that it wasn't nearly as complex as the attorneys tried to make me believe.

There must be consequences for low-life attorneys such as yours.. Dis-barment is too kind.. I am thinking something more like jail time with convicted murderers.. some of these attorneys are simply scum..

Edited June 30, 2010 by kennym

[newlyweds 0]

oh, I am so sorry to hear this exploitation by these so-called attorneys. When my hubby and I did the visa, we hired an immigration expert, not an attorney, and i learned about visajourney which was more help that these people we pay loads of $$$$!! anyway, don't worry about your paperwork so much ok? Gather all other documents you can show for the interview. You can make another I-134, sign it and send it to your fiance. My husband did that for me, when we got approved, we had the NOA2, i made sure I had a copy of his birth certificate(even though it really wasn't needed), i had a copy of his passport, the stamps on the passport for evidence of his visit. all other little things that can show and prove your meeting. That's very important for the interview for the K-1. He will need to show the I-134, he will need his birth certificate, police records or clearance (if they ask for that at the embASsy in his country), proof of your income, letter from your employer, pictures, pay stubs all those things, as long as he has those for the interview, you guys will be good. I know you said the gracious attorney royally screwed up sending originals, never send originals, always copies, but yes when it comes time for you guys to have the interview for the K-1, the embassy will most likely send him a letter too telling him what he needs to bring.

[newlyweds 0]

BTW, don't worry too much about the I-134, you can print out as many as you'd like as long as you sign it and the information is consistent I remember I had a lot of copies of I-134 for my interview oh and a letter of intent to marry from him would be good too. It's like promising he will marry you within 90 days when he arrives in the US. The consulate didn't ask me for it but I brought a copy of mine though

And oh, just giving you a heads up, they will probably ask him about why his denied tourist visa, but he shouldn't mention to the consulate that it was because of some stupid advice a so-called immigration told you

i know it must've been really stressful having your wedding cancelled but hang in there, just keep being patient. And just use this time to be supportive of each other, it'll help making the relationship even sweeter when you finally get married

Oh, by the way, maybe you guys can write actual emails or snail mails to prove an ongoing relationship as well, they wil ask of that during the interview for the K-1. maybe 1 email per week for 8 weeks , that's what we did and proof of phonecalls.. because during the interview, it's just a mater of proving, the relationship is real, you guys will get married in 90 days of his arrival, you can support him when he goes to the US, he has no criminal records, and he is medically ok

God bless! I hope that helped

[Derry Lea 2]

WOW!

I am very sorry to hear about your experience. I just wish there was a special place we could stick all the attorneys like this one. Some island sourrounded by shark infested waters...

Anyway, I considered hiring an attorney before beginning this process also. I spoke to literly a dozen or so, and got so much diferent advise that it made me absolutely terified about this process.. The attorney made it seem impossible and complicated. I learned about VJ from a friend in Colombia, and started to read about the process and learned that it wasn't nearly as complex as the attorneys tried to make me believe.

There must be consequences for low-life attorneys such as yours.. Dis-barment is too kind.. I am thinking something more like jail time with convicted murderers.. some of these attorneys are simply scum..

I'm sorry for not being on the topic.But I saw you got the same RFE we did.Did you just send the piece of paper you received with the answer on it or did you send the I-129F form all over again?

Thanks

[Dodi 69]

And oh, just giving you a heads up, they will probably ask him about why his denied tourist visa, but he shouldn't mention to the consulate that it was because of some stupid advice a so-called immigration told you.

Yes, he was going to tell the immigration officer the same thing he said in the B2 interview, which was technically true - he planned to come to be with me for a few months to spend more time with my children and I before we got married. I needed help with the kids over the summer, and had no childcare, so we thought it would have been the perfect opportunity. A B2 would have allowed him to do that. He was denied because he had given up his flat and moved in with his parents to save money for our future, this gave the appearance that his ties weren't strong enough in the UK to ensure his return, even though he'd owned his own business there for over 5 years.

Oh well... you live and learn.

[Oz88 0]

Sorry to hear about your ordeal... hopefully things go up from here!

When my Fiance and I started our journey, we considered going to an immigration attorney, but being 'cheap', I decided to do a little bit of research on the internet before committing to paying lots of $$$ for something that we could potentially do ourselves. I found VJ and other really informative sites which offered loads of examples and step-by-step guidance on the whole process, and because our case seemed fairly straight-forward, I concluded that hiring counsel would be a waste of money, as eventually, we would need to provide all the information for the forms and the documentation ourselves.

That said, we still had a couple of questions (for some reason I've always googled questions, not realising there was a forum on VJ!), so my Fiance booked a consultation with an immi attorney through his legal services subscription plan at work. On the day of the consultation, he went in, only to be told that the attorney had to go somewhere and instead, his legal secretary would be his replacement. She gave us 'advice' that we later found out to be WAY off the mark. Luckily we took everything that she said with a level of scepticism, and verified it with other authoritative sources before acting upon it.

Edited June 30, 2010 by Oz88

[thongd4me 69]

{actually edited from a private PM I sent to someone who reminded

me that "You told me so about attorneys and you were right."

I took out the parts that referred to my friend's case, }

I've had lots of experience with lawyers in my divorce,

some of it good and mostly bad. I knew my first

lawyer was borderline (now confirmed) incompetent and

I thought that by managing her activities closely I could

take advantage of her low fees and still get a good result.

My second lawyer was great and by that time I was still

asking a lot of questions but let her do her job and the

result was what I hoped for (a divorce within a few months).

As I said if there is no problem with a history of problems with

immigration, there is really zero need to use a lawyer.

You do have to check, double-check and triple check all

documents you send, regardless if a lawyer is the intermediary.

VJ was immensly helpful with it's guides and the guidance of

fellow members. The lawyer's contract with you promises only

that the lawyer will collect a fee from you, it doesn't promise

any result or performance.

Personally after my divorce I couldn't afford to pay for an

immigration lawyer and was glad I passed on that. Without

a lawyer my petition was approved in nearly record time for

Thailand. I think there were only 2 other VJ members with

quicker approvals in the last 6 years. I don't think I was any

smarter than any of the other applicants, but I did front-load

the petition with lots & lots of chat & email data (maybe

80 pages) as well as numerous photos over a period of

6 years. A lawyer may or may not tell you to front-load, but

it's to your advantage to do that.

Finally, much of the work that a lawyer does in a K-1 case

is actually done by their clerical staff who may or may not

have law degrees. In this case it's just busy work; the

copy to the forms whatever information you gave them,

i.e. they are over-priced scribes.

I hope you can pick up and try to get this thing back on track.

Other VJ members who also had initial refusals may be

better sources of information than me, because my petition

went through without incident.

[thongd4me 69]

... my Fiance booked a consultation with an immi attorney through his legal services subscription plan at work. On the day of the consultation, he went in, only to be told that the attorney had to go somewhere and instead, his legal secretary would be his replacement. She gave us 'advice' that we later found out to be WAY off the mark. Luckily we took everything that she said with a level of scepticism, and verified it with other authoritative sources before acting upon it.

As I said in my previous post my first (divorce) lawyer was incompetent and there seems to be a lot of that going around...

Call me crazy, but there seems to be a definite motivation in that - after all lawyers get paid by the hour and the more

running around they have to do to correct their own mistakes the more they are going to charge the client!

My second lawyer came to court and wiped the floor with my ex's lawyer in no time flat, with minimal input from me.

She did that with little/no preparation but with a world of experience that she knew how to put into action.

Even though I paid her less (while her hourly rate was MORE) than I paid the first one,

I would give a referral to others needing a lawyer and THAT is where she will make

a lot more money in the long run. You will see that the rule is this: bad lawyers will

drag things out while good lawyers will get you what you want within reasonable time.

[Rob and Jill 82]

I would quite simply ask for my moneuy back and fire her. She has done nothing for you, but cost you money and cause you stress and headaches. Why would you pay someone to treat you this way?

I know hindsight is 20/20, but in this situation, but at the least she owes you a refund.

[newlyweds 0]

Yes, he was going to tell the immigration officer the same thing he said in the B2 interview, which was technically true - he planned to come to be with me for a few months to spend more time with my children and I before we got married. I needed help with the kids over the summer, and had no childcare, so we thought it would have been the perfect opportunity. A B2 would have allowed him to do that. He was denied because he had given up his flat and moved in with his parents to save money for our future, this gave the appearance that his ties weren't strong enough in the UK to ensure his return, even though he'd owned his own business there for over 5 years.

Oh well... you live and learn.

i think that would be a better thing to tell the consulate why he was denied than tell them it was because of that stupid attorney lol. It's awful how there are people like this. Legally they make themeselves sound competent but they suck at the job lol, the immigration specialist we hired, actually had told us that he was also doing work for the immigration attorneys lol They actually hire him to do the work for them so they don't really know so much I guess. The people who can give you the better information are the ones who are going through this process lol.. People in visajourney! lol everybody helps each other and it's free lol rather than these people who take advantage of us.

[thongd4me 69]

I would quite simply ask for my moneuy back and fire her. She has done nothing for you, but cost you money and cause you stress and headaches. Why would you pay someone to treat you this way?

I know hindsight is 20/20, but in this situation, but at the least she owes you a refund.

Can't get your money back.

Re-read the contract.

[thongd4me 69]

i think that would be a better thing to tell the consulate why he was denied than tell them it was because of that stupid attorney lol.

Better steer clear of that kind of argument - the consulate will NOT be sympathetic or amused. They DON'T CARE!

It's awful how there are people like this.

Legally they make themeselves sound competent but they suck at the job lol, the immigration specialist we hired, actually had told us that he was also doing work for the immigration attorneys lol

They actually hire him to do the work for them so they don't really know so much I guess.

The people who can give you the better information are the ones who are going through this process lol..

People in visajourney! lol everybody helps each other and it's free lol rather than these people who take advantage of us.